“Michael Jordan and Allen Iverson are the 2 that come to mind immediately”: Kobe Bryant named the iconic scoring title champions as his most vicious competitors in interview with Ernie Johnson

Michael Jordan and Allen Iverson are probably the 2 shooting guards who’ve received the same adulation, or more, as Kobe Bryant.

The shooting guard position has fostered perhaps the most skillful, athletic players in the game of basketball. Michael Jordan is obviously the player who’s the measuring stick for everyone else. But there are quite a few others as well.

Kobe Bryant belongs in that same conversation, as does Allen Iverson. Dwyane Wade and Tracy McGrady were also cut from the same cloth, although with different skillsets.

Given this wealth of talent at that position during the late 90s and early 2000s, the Black Mamba genuinely had a ton of competition when it came to the conversation of the best players in the league.

But Kobe held supreme for well over a decade, mainly because of his all-round abilities as a guard. However, if he wasn’t the maniacal competitor he was, death glaring opponents before handing them the L, he wouldn’t be Kobe. And he needed competition to maintain his edge.

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Ernie Johnson conducted an exit interview of sorts with Kobe Bryant

The Lakers legend let the whole world know about his decision to retire from basketball in late 2015. What followed was an outpouring of emotion and the start of perhaps the most unforgettable farewell tour the league will ever see.

Kobe Bryant did mean a lot to a lot of people, and continues to do so posthumously. The major reason for that is his competitive streak and his unending drive for success and perfection. But Kobe wouldn’t be so competitive if he didn’t have some gold standards to aspire to.

Speaking to Ernie Johnson of TNT during an exit interview of sorts, Bryant named his two biggest competitors/rivals who played with the same zest as him:

“Well, Michael Jordan and Kobe Bryant are 2 that come to mind immediately. Because they were just, they were relentless. Michael and his relentlessness was amazing. And Scottie (Pippen)’s as well, on both ends of the floor.”

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“And then from my generation AI was much the same. From the opening tip to the end, I mean this guy was just going and going and going. He’d always put you in jeopardy.”